The Santi School

The Santi School is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of primary education in rural Nepal. We have partner schools in villages by the foothills of the Himalayas, where we train teachers, connect volunteers, and, most importantly, educate children. This blog is dedicated to helping people better understand our organization and our mission, while also celebrating Nepali culture. Follow us for the latest Nepali news, pictures, and features, and leave any feedback you may have in our ask box! Also make sure to check us out at santischool.org!

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A photo by one of our volunteers, Seanie Civale. 

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Three girls laugh while eating lunch at one of our partner schools in Nepal. 

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If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children. 

– Mahatma Gandhi

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Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.

– John Dewey

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The Janasewa Higher Secondary School

It's a school with only 54 staff members, and yet it's serving more than 800 students ranging from nursery to high school. The Janasewa Higher Secondary School has been strained for both resources and space because of its swelling student population. To accommodate its kids, the school began constructing four additional classrooms in the hopes of providing Nepali students with a space to learn comfortably and easily. If you're one out of 800 students at a school in Kirtipur, Kathmandu district, new and immaculate resources provide a major incentive to come to school and take it seriously. It could be the difference between a child staying home or showing up to learn. 

Unfortunately, due to a lack of funds, the school was unable to complete its construction. Doors, windows, and whiteboards could not be fixed. Electrical fixtures remain in disrepair, and wires poke out of the walls. Not only is the incomplete construction an eyesore, but it's a sorely missed opportunity and a reminder of the school's resource strain. 

Janasewa approached The Santi School for help. After visiting the school and determining the need, we have agreed to help raise funds in order to complete the project. We need about NRs. 250,000 — around 3,000 US dollars. It's an ongoing project, so if you are interested in helping, check us out on our website or read more about Janasewa here. 

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Himalaya Nightscape

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Nepal in a nutshell.

Thanks to paperpeople-paperhearts for reminding me!

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"You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation." - Brigham Young 

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Who We Are.

Leaking roofs, cracked walls and missing doors - these small signs of decay litter many of the primary schools in Nepal. Even more discouraging, however, are the budget limitations that these institutions face, crippling the ability to provide key resources like textbooks, paper, and art supplies. WIth school infrastructure quickly crumbling, it is easy for teachers and students alike to slump into an attitude of apathy and pessimism. Education loses its importance - and its value. 

While the Santi School works to fix these problems, we also recognize that our mission cannot solely revolve around school infrastructure  To truly make a sustainable difference, we must focus on interacting with the country's education culture itself. In villages, where work often trumps school, attendance rates are rarely enforced. On some harvest days, children work in the fields, and schools see their numbers dwindle to a trickle of two to three students per class. 

Teachers rarely receive training. Schools are still subjected to out-of-date curricula and ineffective educational techniques. Language classes consist of rote memorization - having students copy what is written on the board - instead of teaching methods like call and response, which have been proven to be much more productive many years ago. 

The Santi School works to counteract this. We train teachers, educate villagers on the full importance of, well, education, and introduce classroom techniques that make learning fun. By integrating our volunteers with village life, we spark change from the inside. While we do build school infrastructure, we also mold attitudes and change minds.

It is our hope to see school become important in the eyes of Nepali children, so that they continue to seek knowledge even after our volunteers leave. 

Registered as a 501(c)(3) organization in the US, the Santi School understakes several initiatives to better improve the quality of education in Nepal. We connect volunteers to Nepal, where they teach English in classrooms, immerse themselves in traditional Nepali culture, and provide resources to schools. All our donations go directly to Nepal - no middleman, no inside profit. And except for a handful of paid employees within the States, the Santi School is run entirely by volunteers. 

Interested in volunteering or taking part in our mission? Contact us at [email protected], or visit our website for more information. 

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Top United Nations officials called today for more funding and advocacy to improve literacy rates among the world’s women, who comprise two out of every three adults who cannot read or write.

“Every literate woman marks a victory over poverty.”  Just how important is a higher global literacy rate? Check out this great United Nations article on the empowerment of women through education and the significance of literacy in today's economy.  In Nepal, 6.4 million men and women still cannot read or write - with a disproportionate majority of this number being female. An article like this is both a wake-up call and tremendous motivation for a mission like ours. Read on. 

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The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.

Aristotle

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Nepali children say hello to the camera at one of our partner schools. 

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A girl eats oranges as her sibling looks on at their mother’s vegetable stall along the streets of the ancient city of Bhaktapur on December 17, 2012.

[Credit : Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters]

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© Navesh Chitrakar

Anjana Lama drinks water from a stone spout in Lalitpur, Nepal.

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At one of our partner schools, Nepali children learn the English terms for different emotions. For many of these children and their families, learning English is an important priority as it opens doors to better career opportunities in the future.